


Effervescence

by sphekso



Category: Hannibal (TV)
Genre: Bev never died and Hannibal never got caught, Champagne, First Kiss, Fluff, M/M, New Year's Eve, New Year's Fluff, New Year's Kiss, No pain only fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-07-31
Updated: 2016-07-31
Packaged: 2018-07-28 08:13:23
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 852
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7632073
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sphekso/pseuds/sphekso
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>It's New Year's Eve, and the Verger-Blooms are throwing a party fit for royalty. Will feels left out as Hannibal circulates with the high-society guests, but as midnight nears, they find themselves closer than ever before.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Effervescence

**Author's Note:**

> Just a quick fluffy fic I threw together for fun (it's my second in 24 hours... jeez). I hope you enjoy it! Bon appetit and all that jazz.

The party wasn’t exactly jumping, and that made Will nervous. If it had been raucous he would’ve been able to blend into the noise, but here in Alana and Margot’s expansive ballroom he was expected to _mingle_ and _socialize_ with their well-to-do guests. He regretted coming in the first place, but he couldn’t exactly say no to the invitation. Alana was his friend, and Margot… Well, the two of them had history.

He plucked a glass of champagne from a nearby table and took a sip. He couldn’t tell one way or the other, but it was probably expensive stuff. He needed some liquid courage, though, so he drained the rest of the flute without stopping to savor its pricey bubbles and grabbed another.

“Easy there, tiger.”

He spun to see a more than welcome face. “Beverly? I didn’t know you were coming tonight.”

“Yeah, well, neither did I,” she said. “I got roped into it at the last second. What about you? You don’t mesh with these high-society types.”

“I got an invite. It would’ve been rude to say no.”

Bev nodded. “Makes sense. I’m just crashing the party. Hannibal basically dragged me here.”

“Hannibal? Why?”

“He said you’d need a friend around. If I’d known how stuffy the guests would be I would’ve come sooner.”

_No kidding_ , Will thought. “I’m glad you’re here. I thought I’d at least have Hannibal to talk to, but he’s been… I dunno, circulating, and it’s tiresome being introduced over and over.”

“I get that for sure,” Bev said. “But hey, I’d better go say hi to Alana and Margot. I’ll find you again in a few.”

“Yeah,” Will said, and gave his tie a little tug. “I’m the worst dressed here, so that shouldn’t be hard.”

Bev broke into a grin. “Did Will Graham just attempt a joke?”

“ _Attempt_ being the operative word.”

“I like it. Anyway, I’ll be back. Leave some champagne for the rest of us.”

Bev disappeared to the other side of the room. Will couldn’t make her out anymore, or Alana and Margot for that matter, so he was stuck all by his lonesome once again. He drank another glass. _Can’t hurt anything_.

Will frowned at his watch. Bev seemed to be taking her sweet time, and it was almost midnight. No one was around to celebrate the New Year with him. As stressful as it was being carted from conversation to conversation, he decided to give Hannibal’s company another go. He found him a little ways away engaged in a discussion with a rather portly woman drenched in pearls. He resolved himself to butt in on them.

He sauntered up with what he hoped was confidence, and intended a strong _Hello, pleasure to meet you_ , but lamely said, “Um, hi,” instead.

The woman blinked at him. “Friend of yours?” she asked Hannibal.

“A very close one,” Hannibal said. “Would you give us a moment? He seems distressed.”

The woman wobbled off on her heels.

Will breathed a sigh of relief. “Thank god,” he said. “I was afraid we’d be trapped with her.”

“Why are you alone? Isn’t Detective Katz here?”

“She disappeared. And it’s almost midnight.”

“I’m aware,” Hannibal said. “And now that you’re here, I must say I’m glad you found me for it.”

“Why’s that?” Will asked, and just as he did, the room began the countdown: _Ten! Nine! Eight! Seven!_

“Oh, no reason,” Hannibal said. _Six! Five!_ “An idea just occurred to me.”

“An idea?” _Four! Three!_

“Yes…”

_Two! One!_

Before Will could process what was happening, Hannibal closed the distance between them, laced his hand through the back of his hair, and pressed their lips together for a short—but strong—kiss.

_Happy New Year!_

They separated, and Will staggered backward. “That was…” He couldn’t find the words.

“Relax, Will. It was merely a kiss to ring in the New Year. Now if you’ll excuse me, I do need to finish that conversation.” He went off to find the woman from before without another word, leaving Will standing alone and gobsmacked.

“Sorry that took so long.” He hadn’t noticed Bev approach. Then again, he hadn’t noticed much of anything since the kiss. “I got distracted.”

“Yeah…” Will said dreamily. “I got pretty distracted, too.”

“Good distracted or bad distracted?”

Will noticed Hannibal in the corner of his vision and locked eyes with him. Hannibal smiled and actually _winked_ _at him_.

“Will?” Bev prodded.

“Good distracted,” Will said. “No, _great_ distracted. But I’ll leave it at that.”

He spent the last two hours of the party chatting with Bev and stealing glances at Hannibal. When it was time to go, he swallowed hard, steeled himself, and caught Hannibal by his arm.

“Will? What’s the matter?”

Gathering up every ounce of courage he possibly could—much of it due to the champagne—Will declared, “What happened earlier… Let’s do it again.”

Hannibal’s lips turned up. “I thought you’d never ask.”

One thing led to another, and before long the first light of January greeted them through Hannibal’s bedroom window.

Bev was seriously never gonna believe this one.


End file.
